MSMED Act Overrides Arbitration Clause; Jurisdiction Lies Where Supplier Is Located: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court recently reiterated that once a dispute is taken to a Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council under the MSMED Act, jurisdiction to entertain challenges arising from those proceedings lies with courts at the location of the Council where the supplier is situated, even if the contract names a different arbitration seat. Dismissing the petition for want of territorial jurisdiction, Justice Jasmeet Singh held, "Since it is the Facilitation Council at Panchkula,...

Delhi High Court Quashes 15% TDS Certificate On SaaS Under India–US DTAA, Orders 2% Certificate

The Delhi High Court has quashed a 15% tax deduction at source (TDS) certificate issued under Section 197 of the Income Tax Act, in respect of payments made for Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) to a US-based company providing a web-based Vendor Management System (VMS) to Indian clients, including Infosys Ltd.A Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar held that the company had made out a prima facie arguable case on non-taxability under the India–US Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement...

Delhi High Court Upholds Arbitral Award, Says SAIL Cannot Deduct CENVAT Credit Shortfall Without Contractual Clause

Reiterating that courts cannot rewrite commercial contracts while exercising jurisdiction under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, the Delhi High Court has upheld an arbitral award directing Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) to refund Rs. 1.40 crore deducted from a contractor's final bill over an alleged shortfall in Minimum Guaranteed CENVAT Credit (MGCC). Justice Avneesh Jhingan held that interpretation of contractual clauses lies within the domain of the arbitral...

Patent Revocation Petition Survives Even If Patent Expires By Efflux Of Time: Delhi High Court

Holding that revocation operates retrospectively and in rem, the Delhi High Court has ruled that expiry of a patent does not render a pending revocation petition infructuous. A Division Bench of Justice C. Hari Shankar and Justice Om Prakash Shukla on Tuesday held “a revocation petition would be maintainable, and would continue to survive, even after the patent of which revocation is sought expires by efflux of time"The court further clarified that once revoked, the patent is “rendered...

Where No Tax Evasion Is Alleged, Liberal Approach Warranted in Transitional ITC Case: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has recently observed that a bona fide mistake committed by a taxpayer while filing revised TRAN-1 and TRAN-2 forms cannot justify denial of transitional Input Tax Credit, especially in the absence of any allegation of tax evasion.TRAN-1 and TRAN-2 are statutory forms under Section 140 of the CGST Act through which taxpayers carried forward eligible input tax credit from the pre-GST regime into GST."However, I am of the view that, when it comes to a case where no evasion of...

Delhi High Court Sets Aside Award Ordering Yamaha To Repurchase Unsold Dealership Stock

Holding that an arbitral tribunal cannot “rewrite the bargain between the parties” or grant relief contrary to the contract, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday upheld the setting aside of an award that had directed India Yamaha Motor Pvt. Ltd. to take back unsold dealership stock and refund its price with 16% annual interest. Dismissing the dealer's appeal under Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, a Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetrapal and Amit Mahajan held that the...

No Separate Disclosure Standard For IP Disputes Under Commercial Courts Act: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court has partly rejected a trademark owner's attempt to introduce additional documents nearly six years after filing suit, holding that intellectual property disputes are not entitled to any special procedural indulgence under the Commercial Courts Act. In a judgment pronounced on February 20, 2026, Justice Arif S. Doctor said the disclosure requirements under amended Order XI of the Civil Procedure Code are “mandatory and must be strictly enforced” in commercial suits.Order XI...

Borrower Cannot Redeem Mortgaged Property After Sale Certificate Under Pre-2016 SARFAESI: Madhya Pradesh HC

Holding that a borrower cannot reclaim mortgaged property after issuance of a sale certificate under the unamended SARFAESI regime, the Jabalpur Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed writ petitions challenging auction proceedings initiated by Bank of India. A Division Bench of Justices Vivek Rusia and Pradeep Mittal clarified that the equitable principle of “once a mortgage, always a mortgage” operates only until the right of redemption is lawfully extinguished.The case arose from...

Damages Awarded By Foreign Court Cannot Be Subject To FEMA, RBI Ceiling: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Monday held that damages awarded by a competent foreign court for breach of contract cannot be subjected to ceilings prescribed under the Foreign Exchange Management Act or RBI guidelines. “In my considered view, the amounts awarded by a competent Court, whether Indian or foreign, towards damages for breach of contract, cannot be subject to ceilings prescribed under FEMA and/or RBI directions/circulars,” Justice Amit Bansal observed while allowing execution of an English...

Bombay High Court Restrains Use Of 'ZEKODOL-P', Finds It Deceptively Similar To IPCA's 'ZERODOL'

The Bombay High Court has granted a permanent injunction in favour of IPCA Laboratories Limited, restraining Rikon Pharmaceuticals Pvt Ltd from using the mark “ZEKODOL-P”, after holding that it infringes IPCA's registered trademark “ZERODOL” and amounts to passing off. Justice Arif S. Doctor, in a judgment pronounced on February 23, 2026, held that the impugned mark is “phonetically, visually and structurally almost identical” to the plaintiff's mark. The court also imposed a cost of Rs 15 Lakh...

Duty-Free Import Benefits Denied Over Unauthorised Diversion, Poor Record-Keeping: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court on 10 February, held that duty-free import benefits under the Advance Authorisation Scheme can be denied when the importer diverts the goods into the domestic market without authorisation.A Bench of Justice G.K. Ilanthiraiyan and Justice R. Poornima allowed the Department's appeals, arising from a batch of civil miscellaneous appeals filed by the Commissioner of Customs (Department) against the proprietor of Regin Agency, and Regin Exports.Setting aside the CESTAT's order,...

Delhi High Court Protects Singer Jubin Nautiyal's Personality Rights From Commercial Exploitation

The Delhi High Court has granted an ex-parte ad-interim injunction in favour of singer Jubin Nautiyal, restraining unauthorised commercial exploitation of his personality and publicity rights, including through artificial intelligence tools, deepfakes and voice cloning technologies. Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, in an order dated February 19, 2026, held: “In the considered opinion of this Court, the plaintiff has a prima facie strong case and having regard to his well-known, popular and...